Attaching means for overshoes



March 6, 1956 BlNGHAM 2,736,972

ATTACHING MEANS FOR OVERSHOES Filed April 22, 1955 I A 1.u'zggagugia uacazx aau.

IIlIlI/IA'IIII/IlIII/II/ll/Ab Jnvenfur MoQms BINGHAM WZZY/ fa I 7ifiorrze yj United States Patent ATTACHING MEANS FOR OVERSHOES Morris Bingham, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Application April 22, 1953, Serial No. 350,335

2 Claims. (Cl. 3658.5)

This invention relates to improvements in mens spat type rubber over-shoes.

The invention has, for its object, the provision of a spring clamp in a mans spat type over-shoe which is adapted to clamp over the shank section of a shoe sole at opposite sides thereof to retain the over-shoe to the shoe of the wearer and thereby minimize the hazard of unintentional detachment of the over-shoe from the wearers shoe.

The foregoing object is achieved by the insertion of a U-shaped spring clamp in an over-shoe at the shank section thereof with the bight or connecting portion extending transversely of the sole and the side portions thereof disposed in an upstanding position to clampingly converge on a shoe sole within the over-shoe.

Other objects, advantages and characteristic features of my invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a plan view of an over-shoe embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the lines 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a fragment of a clamping member with a covering thereover.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view taken through the clamping member shown in Fig. 3.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 5 designates a spat type over-shoe of the type worm by men, including a front section 6, a heel section 7 and a shank or instep section 8 therebetween. The instep section 8 is provided with a substantially U-shaped flexible spring clamp comprising a flattened connecting portion 9 extending transversely of the instep section 8 and spaced yieldable upstanding clamping members 10 at opposite ends of connecting portion 9.

As will be seen particularly in Fig. 2, the connecting portion 9 is embedded in the rubber sole with the upstanding clamping members 10 disposed above the insole 11 between the opposing inner surfaces of the side walls 12 of the over-shoe. The clamping members 10 are bent to provide upwardly converging portions 14 and outward- 1y divergent terminal portions 15.

When a shoe is inserted in the overshoe, the side edges of the shoe sole 16 at the shank section exerts expanding pressure on the clamping members 10, as indicated by dotted line, until the converging portions 14 are permitted to close over the upper edge of the shoe sole adjacent the shoe upper 17 in resilient clamping engagement with the shoe sole. The terminal portions 15, being outwardly divergent, will lie along but will not be compressed into the adjacent surface of the shoe upper. This will be governed to a large extent by the height of the clamping members 10 which should be below the upper edge of the side walls 12 at the instep section of the over-shoe. The

g A 2,736,972 Patented Mar. 6, 1956 innermost section of the converging portions 14 should bear snugly against the upper surface of the shoe sole when the latter is emplaced in the over-shoe and the terminal portion 15 should be sufficiently flattened and outwardly divergent to prevent appreciable pressure contact with the shoe upper.

Although I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention it will be appreciated that alterations and modifications may be resorted to without departing from the scope and spirit of my invention as defined in the appended claims. For example my spring clamp may be made of a resilient spring steel or it may be made of any suitable resilient material, for example a plastic material in which the clamping members are resiliently biasable to engage a shoe sole therebetween for retaining an over-shoe of the spat type about a shoe.

It is also contemplated to position the connecting portion 9 of a spring clamp between the opposing surfaces of the sole and insole of an over-shoe so that the upstanding clamping members 10 will project from the side edges of the insole between the opposing side walls of the over-shoe. This renders my spring clamp readily applicable to prefabricated over-shoes.

It is further contemplated to provide the upstanding clamping members 10 with suitable protective coverings, particularly in the converging and terminal portions 14 and 15. Thus, in Figs. 3 and 4, I have illustrated one practical application of a covering 20 for a clamping member 10. Member 10 may be notched, as indicated at 21, or otherwise provided with means for gripping engagement with the cover 20. Cover 20 may be in the form of a slip cover or may be moulded about the clamping members 10. These covers may be of rubber, plastic or other suitable material to protect the surfaces of a shoe which might otherwise be marred by contact with the clamping members 10.

What I claim is:

1. In a rubber over-shoe comprising a ground engaging wall including a shank section and opposing side walls upwardly directed from said ground engaging wall, a U- shaped clamping plate shaped to provide a connecting portion extending transversely of said shank section and resilient upstanding clamping members at opposite ends of said connecting portion, said connecting portion and adjacent portions of said upstanding clamping members being embedded in said shank section of said ground engaging wall with the remainder of said clamping members projecting beyond said shank section and being freely disposed in the space defined by the opposing side walls of the overshoe, said clamping members being also inwardly convergent toward their free ends to receive the sole of a shoe therebetween with the most inwardly convergent portion in compression with the upper surface of the sole, and terminal portions of said clamping members outwardly divergent from said most inwardly convergent portion thereof.

2. An over-shoe as set forth in claim 1, in which said freely disposed portions of the clamping members have their opposing side edges shaped to provide a plurality of tooth-like projections, and a protective covering disposed about said clamping members and in retaining engagement with said tooth-like projections.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 352,199 MacLeod Nov. 9, 1886 1,002,723 McCann Sept. 5, 1911 1,111,188 Simpson Sept. 22, 1914 2,239,206 Tietig Apr. 22, 1941 

